


Broken

by whump_tr0pes



Series: David & Nia [9]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Humiliation, Hurt/Comfort, Injury Recovery, Rape Aftermath, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 14:42:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21738190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whump_tr0pes/pseuds/whump_tr0pes
Summary: As Nia lies in a hospital bed recovering from Graylan's torture, her supervisor delivers devastating news. (Set before last chapter of My Name Is Human)
Series: David & Nia [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1481636
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9
Collections: Bad Things Happen Bingo





	Broken

**Author's Note:**

> Someone requested the prompt "humiliation" for Nia with her team after My Name Is Human. This is set during that fic, approx 5 days after she's rescued, while she's still in the hospital. Mentions of past torture and rape.

Nia knew it was inevitable.

A visit from the boss, the unescapable debrief. The decisions to be made after.

Nia knew he’d already made the decision. She was broken. It was undeniable. She was no longer an asset.

_If anything, I’m a liability._

Nia’s fist was tight around the blanket, even though it hurt. She bit her lip as her eyes moved around the tiny hospital room, made even smaller by the fact that her team was packed into it. The team she had been promoted to barely ten months ago, and the team she had left. The team that had ultimately pulled her out of the woods, half-dead.

Collet shifted nervously. “So.” He shuffled some papers in the folder in his hand. “I know nobody wants to be here doing this, so let’s just get it over with.” He cleared his throat. “Mission debrief for mission 19-0087-”

“Jesus, Collet,” David breathed. “We’re calling this a _mission_?”

Collet swallowed hard. “I know it sounds -”

“It’s a fucking _joke._” David’s hand tightened in Nia’s, laced together on the hospital bed. “Graylan fucking _tortured_ her nearly to death and we’re calling that a fucking _mission -_”

Collet cleared his throat and met David’s eye for the first time. “We’re calling it a mission so Nia’s hospital bills are taken care of under worker’s comp and company insurance. Otherwise it would be considered an off-duty injury and you’d be responsible for the whole bill.” David clenched his jaw, silenced. “Given the extraordinary sacrifice Nia has made, I think it’s the least we could do.” He looked back down to the file in his hand. “Mission 19-00873. Carried out October 19, 2019 to October 20, 2019. Tom Layard, team lead. Marshall Smith, intel, primary. Lucius Wilson, intel, secondary. Christopher Stevens, intel, tertiary. Dr. Gina Meyers, medical director. Robert Lexing, extraction team lead. John Rawlins, extraction team medic. Andie Soriya, extraction team secondary. Estéban Cordova, extraction team tertiary. David Lee, infiltration lead. Rob Collet, supervisor. Nia Callum…” His voice wavered. “…mission objective.”

Nia flinched, squeezing her eyes shut. David’s thumb rubbed soothing circles on her hand. Her cheeks burned with humiliation.

Collet cleared his throat and moved on. “Mission objective: infiltration of John Graylans’s safehouse and rescue of Nia Callum.” Her eyes opened, sweeping around the room once to settle on the blanket in front of her. She wilted under everyone’s stares. “Time of departure: 1224. Approximate location: Franklin, North Masset. Method: ground infiltration. Point of departure: Denver, Tredmont. Enemy contact, John Graylan.”

Nia blinked. _He raped me and nearly killed me and I never even knew his first name._

Collet took a slow breath. “Timeline of events: 0237 October 19, David Lee receives phone call from enemy. 0347 October 19, mobilization of team; Lee, Smith, Layard, Wilson Stevens. 1151 October 19, enemy location determined. 1904 October 19, David Lee arrival in Franklin. 2338 October 19, extraction team arrival in Franklin. 0206 October 20, enemy neutralized. 0347 October 20, extraction. 0812 October 20, Nia Callum arrival at St. Anthony’s hospital.” Nia looked over at David as his face darkened.

Collet closed the folder. “Mission successful.” He avoided Nia’s eyes. Even he knew it was in poor taste to call it a success when she was lying in a hospital bed, broken. She swallowed as tears pricked her eyes. He lifted his head to look around the room. “Does anyone have anything to add?”

David swallowed hard, his throat burning. “I am…incredibly grateful…” He looked around the room. “For every single person in this room. You all went above and beyond to save Nia and I know that neither of us would be here now if you hadn’t done it.” His eyes met Lexing’s and he nodded, the flash of a memory overtaking his vision for a moment: _Graylan’s man, lifting his gun, blood pouring from the gunshot wound to his abdomen. David’s hand, holding a knife in front of him as he shook. The shot, and the man collapsing to the ground, killed by Lexing’s bullet._

“I don’t want to revisit this any longer than necessary. I know this meeting is painful as it is. I’m bound by protocol but I think I’ve fulfilled it.” Collet nodded to the teams. “You’re all dismissed.” He turned back to Nia. “I still have something to discuss with you, though.”

Nia closed her eyes. _Here it is. “You’re no longer an asset. You’re no longer part of the team.”_

_“You’re broken.”_

“No.” Her throat was still impossibly sore even after nearly five days of recovery. She cleared her throat. “I…I want everyone to stay.” She looked around at everyone. “I want you all to be with me.”

Collet pressed his lips together. “Ok.” David squeezed her hand. Smith came over to sit on the hospital bed, placing a hand gently on her shoulder.

Collet looked down at the floor as if steeling himself. Then he raised his eyes to Nia. “At this time, you are off the team on medical leave with pay.” Nia’s eyes went wide, hopeful for a moment. “You will not have a place on the team once you recover, however.” Her face fell. She pressed her trembling lips together. “As this time my oversight has determined that the trauma you experienced makes you unfit for duty in the field. Your injuries, both physical and…um.” He cleared his throat. “…mental will make you a liability in further missions.”

“Jesus Christ, Collet,” David breathed.

Collet took a moment before continuing. “However, you have been granted a pension that will equal 100% your current pay effective immediately for the rest of your life. David has also been granted leave at 100% his current salary for the next two months in order to assist you in any way you need.” He looked apologetically at David. “I didn’t know if you would -”

“Absolutely.” He looked at Nia with fierce protectiveness burning in his eyes. “If you’ll have me, I’ll take care of you while you recover.”

Nia’s eyes burned, but she didn’t want to let the tears fall. Not now. She nodded jerkily.

Collet had the good sense to look embarrassed. “The money won’t repay you for what you suffered. But…it’ll take the burden off a little, I hope. Whether you choose to work again is your choice. Please know that you’ll be taken care of on our end.”

Shame burned in Nia’s stomach. “I don’t want your money,” she whispered, her voice ragged. “I want to go back to work.”

Collet spread his hands in supplication. “I…I’m sorry, Nia. My hands are tied on this.”

“Bullshit.” Fury rippled through her. Her ribs ached. “If I make a full recovery, you’ll really make me stay away? You won’t take me back? Even if I get strong again, as strong as I was before?”

Collet looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor. “No.” He looked around the room and saw everyone looking at him with varying degrees of anger. And maybe contempt.

A seething sob forced its way through her. “I’ve given you everything. I’ve thrown everything I have into this job because…I _need_ this job, Rob. I _need_ it. And then Graylan tortures me and…you’re just gonna kick me out? This wasn’t my fault, Rob. This…wasn’t…” She gasped, and the tears poured hot down her cheeks. “This wasn’t my fault. And you’re just gonna…_stand there_ and tell me I can’t…I can’t come back…” Her chest heaved with a bitter sob. “Graylan took everything from me and now…_you’re going to take this, too?_” She collapsed into sobs. David reached out to her, to hold her, but she leaned forward, whimpering a little from the pain. “You’re my supervisor, Collet, your job is to _fucking_ advocate for me…” Her voice rose to a scream and she writhed with pain, her eyes streaming. “_How could you take this away from me?_” She fell back against the bed, her arms pressing against her face. She dissolved into incoherent sobs.

A nurse poked his head in, drawn by Nia’s increased heart rate on the monitor. Collet waved him off with a dismissive hand. He withdrew with an irritated look on his face. Collet folded his hands in front of him as he stared at the floor.

David pulled Nia into his arms and she latched onto him, chest heaving with sobs. _It’s true. I’m really broken. I’m so broken they won’t even think about letting me come back. They won’t even give me that chance._

Collet hung his head and slipped quietly out of the room. The team gathered in closer to Nia, each trying to get close enough to put a hand softly on her. She didn’t feel them. She sobbed harder into David’s chest.


End file.
